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2G headlamp rear housing crack repairs

1.1K views 9 replies 4 participants last post by  talontsiawd  
#1 ·
I recently bought a used factory headlamp on ebay for my 2G to replace a broken one (lens damaged). The one I received had an excellent lens but the housing had been severely damaged by an amatuer removal job. I was able to make repairs to the ebay housing and after a mornings worth of work it is now installed and no one can see any of the repairs. It's watertight and all secure after a lot of amatuer plastic welding. If you have a badly damaged housing, it can be salvaged with some work. I decided to take pictures along the way of the repairs just in case it's use to any other DSM'er.

Photo index

Dave W.

Seller on ebay said this was just a small crack!




Image
 
#4 ·
Well I tried that first by experimenting with gently removing the old lens. Cracks started in several places and I decided not to risk trying to get the good lens off the bad housing and end up with two bad lenses. Maybe the heat and UV exposure in Phoenix after 5 years outdoors makes them extra brittle. It was 117 in my garage the day I did the repairs. Come on winter!

Dave W.
 
#6 ·
greenstreak said:
<snip>looks like fraud to me but all is good since you were able to fix it.
I thought about pursuing this further than the 10 or so emails back and forth with this seller but it's not worth my time. I was able to make it work. The last email I got from the seller said he was sorry he lied about the top mounting tab being completely missing but he really was an honest person. Excuse me? He also added that if I posted negative feedback about the sale he would be sure to post negative feedback to me in ALL CAPS. Wow, now there's a mature person.

There's a whole lot more to worry about in life than this guy.

Next project? I want to do a tech topic on how I added accent lighting to the door panel switches on my 2C Eclipse so you can see the buttons at night. Stay tuned...

Dave W.
 
#7 ·
talontsiawd said:
You could have just put the new lens on your old housing. I think that it would have been easier and it would have looked as if you never touched it. Just my oppinion.
talontsiawd,
As an FYI FWIW,
Just curious if you have ever changed the lens only in a 2G headlamp housing? I went back and experimented with the lens in the bad lamp to see if I could have got it out in one piece. I wanted to see if I could have maybe pulled off the lense swap if I had worked at it slowly. Nope. It might as well be a one piece unit. No way it was ever coming out without ruining it.

Thanks,
Dave
 
#8 ·
azdave said:


talontsiawd,
As an FYI FWIW,
Just curious if you have ever changed the lens only in a 2G headlamp housing? I went back and experimented with the lens in the bad lamp to see if I could have got it out in one piece. I wanted to see if I could have maybe pulled off the lense swap if I had worked at it slowly. Nope. It might as well be a one piece unit. No way it was ever coming out without ruining it.

Thanks,
Dave
Yeah, i have. What you do is remove the metal clips on the headlight. Then you take a heat gun or hairdryer to heat up the silcone (or whatever it is-grey sticky stuff). Besure not to heat it for too long and melt something. Slowly start prying the lens of as you continue to heat it. Eventually you can pry the lens off. It is not very hard, just take your time. Then put silicone around the edges, put the lens in place, and use some heat to remelt the silcone stuff the came from the factory. Press the lens down for a minute or two while the factory silcone stuff hardens and replace the clips. Then your done. From the way you wrote you post, it sounds like you are calling me out and saying that it is not possible. That is atleast the way i read it, sorry if i am wrong, it is hard to tell the tone people are using when it is written. If you want proof look at my headlights. They are 95-96 headlights but the housing is black-It didn't come like that from the factory.
Image
 
#9 ·
talontsiawd said:

{snip}From the way you wrote you post, it sounds like you are calling me out and saying that it is not possible
Nope, just wondered if you had done it successfully, how it was accomplished. I figured I might ruin the good part and be stuck with two bad ones so I did it the way I knew would work for me.

Thanks. Hopefully there's not a "next time" to do either method.

Dave W.
 
#10 ·
azdave said:


Nope, just wondered if you had done it successfully, how it was accomplished. I figured I might ruin the good part and be stuck with two bad ones so I did it the way I knew would work for me.

Dave W.
Sorry, it is hard to tell the tone online. Anyways, if you ever have a problem and need to do it, pm if you run into trouble. It is alittle tricky the first time you try but it isn't to bad.